Presley, Elvis - Elvis On Stage - Keith Alverson

(2000/Ed Bonja & Henrik Knudsen) Hardback, 22.5x31 cm, 112 pages, completely full page stage photos 1973-77 in full color.An amazing photo book! Very rare and hard to find today. -Elvis On Stage is a hard cover book with full-color Elvis photos, taken by the author when attending Elvis Presley shows. Most of the Elvis photos were taken on tour, because in Las Vegas no cameras were allowed. The book is very well done and contains good shots of Elvis on stage starting from 1973 to 1977.

Foreword

This photo book has been anticipated for over twenty years; and, finally, it is ready for everyone to see! The year Elvis passed away, I received so many letters and phone calls requesting a full-color photo book of my personal photos. Well, as most of you know now, my photographs are really not personal anymore. Since I took my first shot of Elvis in I973, my photos have been (and continue to be) circulated all over the world. Initially, they were available only through the fan clubs in the States, then through the fan clubs in Europe and Asia. Eventually, fans from every country in the world were contacting me for my photos of Elvis. All this occurred before I977; so, I don't want anyone who was not a fan twenty years ago to think that I am now. after all these years, capitalizing on the Elvis name and image. All the fans that know me or knew of me from the concert years in the seventies, know who I really am and exactly what this book is about. I know that i don’t have to explain to anyone about the sincerity of this project or my love for this great entertainer we all call ELVlS. I am not going to tell you (again) what a wonderful. talented and dynamic gift Elvis was to the world - you’ve heard and read all there is to know about that already.

I am simply hoping to illustrate what I witnessed during those incredible years of Elvis on tour (through my eyes) as I captured the REAL THING on stage. It has taken this long to trust and believe in someone that I can work along side of to bring you, the fans, what you so deservedly desire. This photo book consists of my favorite shots of Elvis that can only really be appreciated in full color and full page quality. where most of the previous books have failed with their reduced-size photos or black and white versions of what was originally shot in color. You will notice in this book that some of my photos are printed in the horizontal format, rather than vertically. Although this may be a bit unusual, I feel very strongly that those particular shots need to be printed horizontally to preserve the integrity of the shot as I saw it through my lens, without printing the shots smaller to fit the vertical format or, worse yet, cropping out some of the photograph itself.

I have been offered photo book deals for many years - mainly black and white with some color, but always accompanied by a lot of text (information you have already read before numerous times); so, I turned down those offers and waited for the right time and the right kind of offer - the best proposal. I will not attempt to glamorize my experiences while following Elvis on tour, but simply relate to you what I saw with my photographs which are included in the following pages. Over the years, I have always said; “l never have to sell my photos; they simply sell themselves without any assistance from me. When you had the subject i had to work with, it was not a difficult task.” I say in all sincerity that it was a tremendous privilege to photograph Elvis, and it was a very special time in my life - a period of time that i will forever cherish and NEVER, EVER FORGET!